Soccer-Torino sack coach Mihajlovic after Juventus defeat

MILAN, Jan 4 (Reuters) - Torino sacked coach Sinisa Mihajlovic on Thursday, one day after he was sent off for dissent in a 2-0 Coppa Italia defeat against neighbours Juventus.

The Serbian-born coach, who as a player was regarded as one of the game’s best-ever freekick specialists, had been in charge at the club for 18 months.

Torino are 10th in Serie A and did not give any reasons for the unexpected decision.

“Torino announce the release of Sinisa Mihajlovic from his post of first-team coach,” said a brief statement. “We thank Sinisa and his staff for the effort and passion he has shown in these 18 months.”

There was no immediate comment from Mihajlovic himself. (Writing by Brian Homewood in Bern, editing by Pritha Sarkar)